I am circulating a call for presenters for Susan Miller,
Research Specialist, Center on Disability Studies, here at UHM.
It will be a part of the Pac Rim 2001 Conference.
David Pfeiffer
MARCH 3-4, 2001: DANCE ME TO MY SONG: A SYMPOSIUM ON DIVERSITY
AND DISABILITY: REFLECTIONS ON WOMEN, CULTURE AND SEXUALITY
Call For Presenters
The University of Hawai'i Center on Disability Studies is
recruiting women and girls with disabilities, UH system-wide
faculty and other medical professionals, educators, health-care
providers and diversity and disability advocates in Hawai'i and
elsewhere to volunteer to present, facilitate and participate in
discussions on topics at a March 3-4, 2001 symposium being
organized to discuss sex, love and relationships in the real
world of women and girls with disabilities. An outcome paper with
recommendations will be distributed with the 2001 Pacific Rim
Conference on Disabilities reports.
Proposed Topics
1. "Dance Me to My Song": A Discussion of Film and Other Media
Portrayals of Women and Girls with Disabilities (Meet the Co-
Screenwriter, Heather Rose)
2. Sex, Love, & Relationships in the Real World: Dangers and
Triumphs of Women with Disabilities
3. The Impact of Cultural Perceptions on Images of Women with
Disabilities
4. Expressions of Sexuality: Conventional Lovemaking and Beyond
5. Sexuality and the Public School: How to Teach Sexuality in the
Classroom
6. How Particular Disabilities Affect Sexuality and Sexuality
Education
7. Sexual Pleasure and Reproduction: Teaching Youth about
Sexuality
8. Fostering Relationships and Enabling Romance: Some Suggestions
9. Developing Social Skills: Helping Teachers and Parents Guide
Children and Youth
10. Reproduction and Birth Control: Getting the Facts, Getting
Them Straight
11. Sexual Orientation and Self-Image: A Discussion with Women
with Disabilities and their Partners in Same-Sex and Heterosexual
Relationships
12. Personal Assistants: Exploring the Boundaries and Taboos of
Intimacy in Adult Helping Relationships
Purpose of the Request for Involvement
Diversity and Disability: Reflections on Women, Culture and
Sexuality is a centerpiece event during Women's History Month.
The symposium includes an important public awareness event the
screening of "Dance Me To My Song," which was a 1998 Cannes Film
Festival selection. Here are some excepts from a review by James
Berardinelli: Neither Rose nor director Rolf de Heer want "Dance
Me to My Song" to be known solely as a movie about a disabled
person. Certainly, that's a critical aspect of the film, but it's
not everything. In fact, the central story is really an offbeat
love triangle. On one leg, there's Julia, who has the same
emotional and sexual needs as any other woman. On another leg is
Madelaine (Joey Kennedy), her caregiver, who's as emotionally
crippled as Julia is physically damaged. [David's note: NOT my
choice of wording.] And on the third leg is Eddie (John
Brumpton), a kind (and somewhat mysterious) neighbor who strikes
up a friendship with Julia while being sexually attracted to
Madelaine. Dance Me to My Song is about Julia's struggle to win
the battle for Eddie's heart and body. And the script makes a
point of emphasizing the importance of intelligence in any
seduction.
As a means of bringing sharper attention to the symposium
themes, the film's co-screenwriter, actor Heather Rose, has
agreed to fly from Australia to participate in both the symposium
and the 17th annual International Pacific Rim Conference
Disabilities, March 3-6, 2001.
Why a Symposium on Sex, Love and Relationship?
Society's attitudes toward women with disabilities often
cause more frustration and difficulty than the actual disability.
The social isolation experienced by women with disabilities,
combined with the stereotype that they have no interest in
sexuality, are serious barriers to obtaining information. Older
women with disabilities were raised in a time when the stereotype
was even stronger about sex and sexuality was considered
inappropriate for persons with disabilities. Symposium
participants will explore sex education, love relationships and
culture in the real world of women and girls with disabilities.
Participants will identify systems barriers to appropriate
sexuality education for women and girls with disabilities.
Though the process of presentations, panel and roundtable
discussions and video-taped interviews, the symposium aims to
promote a broader understanding of the lives of women with
disabilities by highlighting important topics that impact the
lives of all women and girls. The symposium itself will help
lessen the feelings of over-protectiveness and fears that create
barriers to imparting sexuality information to girls and women
with disabilities.
The event is also being promoted by the UH Systemwide
Commission on the Status of Women and Commission on Diversity,
Honolulu, Maui and Hawaii counties and state commissions on
Status of Women and Disabilities and other women, diversity and
disability groups across the state and the UH system. In
addition, Hawai`i International Film Festival, the Australian
Consulate and the Office of the Governor have joined the Center
on Disability Studies and others as sponsor organizations in
promoting "Dance Me To My Song" by helping host private and
public events in Ms. Rose's honor. College credit for the
symposium is available through the UH Outreach College.
For more information and to express interest about being a
presenter contact: Susan B. Miller, Research Specialist, Center
on Disability Studies, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1776
University Avenue UA4-6, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822, USA, Voice:
808/956-3957; Fax: 808/956-7878; E-mail: <[log in to unmask]>.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
David Pfeiffer, Ph.D.
Resident Scholar
Center on Disability Studies
University of Hawai`i at Manoa
[log in to unmask]
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Center on Disability Studies....maximizing individual
potential by encouraging independence, self-determination,
and full participation in the community.
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